In a month, the Celtics will begin their title defense. It will be without Kristaps Porzingis, who suffered a torn medial retinaculum in his left leg and underwent surgery in June after beating the Mavericks in the Finals.
“I’ve done a lot of things and I’m doing pretty well. I’m looking forward to continuing to progress at this rate and hopefully I’ll be back on the field with the guys as soon as possible.”, explained Latvian at Boston Media Day.
The earliest possible, the player confirmed, is December since after going under the knife at the end of June, his absence was estimated at five or six months. What can he do now?
Kristaps Porzingis is “hungry”
“I walk properly, I run, I'm on the field, I shoot normally,” he lists. “I do a lot of things honestly. I can even do with a little contact and I feel good afterwards. It's a good sign. I'm optimistic, as always.”
For his second season with the Celtics, which he will start two months late, Kristaps Porzingis will therefore have a hard time doing better than his first, even if he only played 57 matches in the regular season and 7 in the playoffs.
“I'm still very hungry. I feel like I have some revenge to take. I want to stay healthy in the playoffs. I still have a lot to prove in my eyes.”concludes the former Knicks player.
| Kristaps Porzingis | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | LF | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Party | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2015-16 | NYK | 72 | 28 | 42.1 | 33.3 | 83.8 | 1.8 | 5.5 | 7.3 | 1.3 | 2.9 | 0.7 | 1.7 | 1.9 | 14.3 |
| 2016-17 | NYK | 66 | 33 | 45.0 | 35.7 | 78.6 | 1.7 | 5.5 | 7.2 | 1.5 | 3.7 | 0.7 | 1.8 | 2.0 | 18.1 |
| 2017-18 | NYK | 48 | 32 | 43.9 | 39.5 | 79.3 | 1.3 | 5.3 | 6.6 | 1.2 | 2.9 | 0.8 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 22.7 |
| 2019-20 | DAL | 57 | 32 | 42.7 | 35.2 | 79.9 | 1.8 | 7.7 | 9.5 | 1.8 | 3.3 | 0.7 | 1.6 | 2.0 | 20.4 |
| 2020-21 | DAL | 43 | 31 | 47.6 | 37.6 | 85.5 | 1.9 | 7.0 | 8.9 | 1.6 | 2.7 | 0.5 | 1.2 | 1.4 | 20.1 |
| 2021-22 * | All Teams | 51 | 29 | 45.9 | 31.0 | 86.7 | 2.0 | 6.1 | 8.1 | 2.3 | 2.7 | 0.7 | 1.6 | 1.7 | 20.2 |
| 2021-22 * | DAL | 34 | 30 | 45.1 | 28.3 | 86.5 | 1.9 | 5.8 | 7.7 | 2.0 | 2.6 | 0.7 | 1.6 | 1.7 | 19.2 |
| 2021-22 * | WAS | 17 | 28 | 47.5 | 36.7 | 87.1 | 2.2 | 6.6 | 8.8 | 2.9 | 2.9 | 0.7 | 1.7 | 1.5 | 22.1 |
| 2022-23 | WAS | 65 | 33 | 49.8 | 38.5 | 85.1 | 1.8 | 6.7 | 8.4 | 2.7 | 3.0 | 0.9 | 2.1 | 1.5 | 23.2 |
| 2023-24 | BOS | 57 | 30 | 51.6 | 37.5 | 85.8 | 1.7 | 5.5 | 7.2 | 2.0 | 2.7 | 0.7 | 1.6 | 2.0 | 20.1 |
| Total | 459 | 31 | 45.9 | 36.1 | 83.1 | 1.7 | 6.1 | 7.9 | 1.8 | 3.0 | 0.7 | 1.7 | 1.8 | 19.7 | |
How to read the stats? GM = Games Played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Shots Made / Shots Attempted; 3pts = 3-pointers / 3-pointers Attempted; LF = Free Throws Made / Free Throws Attempted; Off = Offensive Rebound; Def = Defensive Rebound; Tot = Total Rebounds; Pd = Assists; Fte: Personal Fouls; Int = Steals; Bp = Loose Balls; Ct: Blocks; Pts = Points.
